Hinata's Dream
by Lotus of Konoha
Summary: Well, just read the Author's Note... It's another arranged marriage, but I'm not telling you with whom until the first chapter. Rated just in case.
1. Author's Note

**A/N: Alright, to hell with the Naruto/RL thing... that was doomed to fail. I'm going to stick with Naruto though. This time, though... I'll start off with a nice, short little story, no more than 10 chapters or so. But, it might develop into something more as time goes on.**

**Basically, the plotline is this: Taking place after the death of Itachi Uchiha, and Kabuto's fusion with Orochimaru, Hinata's father calls her to his quarters to let her know of an arranged marriage. With whom? Well, you'll have to wait and see.**

**Pairings besides Hinata/???: Neji/Tenten, Shika/Temari, Chouji/Ino, and... well, that's it.**


	2. The Request

**A/N: Well, time to get started with this. Cracks knuckles LET'S DO THIS THING!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters within. They belong to the honorable Kishimoto-sama.**

Chapter 1: The request.

Team 8 was training, and training hard. All 4 of them, human and canine alike, were panting heavily from exertion. The Jonin exams were in 1 month, and all of Team 8 were applying for the rank. Hinata, whom should have been the underdog for Jonin candidacy, was actually pulling ahead of Kiba and his dog partner, and were nearing the skills of the bug master, Shino. Where this sudden surge of inner strength and stamina came from, nobody knew for sure, but most theorized that it had to do with the return of a certain blonde shinobi.

It had been approximately 4 months since Naruto and Sasuke's return from the Akatsuki headquarters, and the defeat of 5 of the Akatsuki, not including the few already killed by Konoha shinobi before that time. Zetsu, Kisame, Pain, Tobi, and, most important of all, Itachi Uchiha had been killed. After they had returned, Sasuke had been sentenced to 2 years of indentured servitude to Konoha before he would be allowed to return to being a ninja. A generous offer, by all accounts.

Hinata and Kiba had just split from a midair clash, and their eyes were darting back and forth to look for Shino when a Hyuuga messenger, a member of the branch family, arrived at the training grounds. The messenger bowed before saying, "Lady Hinata, I have a message for you. Your father requests your presence in his chamber for official Hyuuga clan business."

Hinata almost glanced back, but decided against it. Kiba would have chosen the second she was turned away to attack. Insteady, she focused her chakra, and activated her Byakugan. She glanced left, then right. Then, she disappeared, moving just a little faster than it was possible to follow with the naked eye. She dashed straight up a tree, the same tree that Shino had been hiding in. The only chakra that he had been emitting was a tiny amount from the soles of his feet to keep himself on the tree, but Hinata's vision had improved so much that she could see even that amount, and it had given him away as if there were no leaves on the tree in the first place.

She appeared right in front of him, and hit him twice, with the same hand, in blurring succession. Once in the right shoulder, and once in the left side of his hip. He was effectively disarmed, and began to fall out of the tree. Hinata jumped up, hard, infusing her legs with chakra to enhance her physical abilities. She cleared the top of the tree easily, and backflipped once in the air, hands outstretched, and landed right behind Kiba. The same tactic was applied to him, except all four limbs were hit. Her job done, she turned to the stumps in the middle of the clearing, bowed to her sensei, Kurenai, whom was staring at her with disbelief, and walked back to the messenger.

Kurenai was amazed. When all three of her students had requested permission to enter the exams, she had no idea that it would be Hinata outclassing both of her teammates. Ever since Naruto had come back, Hinata had changed dramatically. She was drastically stronger, faster, and more efficient in her attacks. Her vision had grown so much that she could see even farther than Neji. She had perfected the stances of the 8 Trigrams. Not to mention the fact that she had also grown drastically in confidence. She had stopped stuttering completely, never touched her fingers together, and only blushed slightly at the sight of Naruto. She had really matured, Kurenai thought, with a whimsical smile on her face.

Hinata bowed to the messenger, and asked, in a polite but firm voice, "Thank you. What is your message?"

The messenger replied, in a respectful tone, "Your father wishes to speak with you regarding your marriage."

Hinata's eyes bugged out. "My WHAT?!" She went from controlled to full blush and shaking fists in a single second.

The messenger, whose name, coincidentally, was Chimero, cowered beneath her. "Please, my Lady, I do not know what he wishes to speak about regarding your marriage, but it could be something that might turn out to be very good for you."

She was still blushing, and still angry, but she brought her fury under control, and said in a too-calm voice, "Very well... your duty is done, go and forget what you have heard. I will ... _speak_... with my father."

Chimero left as fast as he could, to get to a bar so as to drink himself into a stupor and assume for the rest of his life that all he had seen that day was a hallucination, brought on by 12 gallons of sake.

**Lol... nifty ending, eh? And you still don't know who she's going to be with! HA!**

**Sorry I'm one day late... Reviews please, I beg of you!**

**Hinata: Who are you setting me up with?!**

**Me: You'll see... evil laugh**

**Hinata: glare**

**Stay tuned! **


	3. Meeting with Father

**A/N: To my anonymous reviewer: She's changed over time, but she will reach a balance between this new, strong Hinata and the old one.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters within. They belong to the honorable Kishimoto-sama.**

Chapter 2: Meeting with Father.

Hiashi Hyuuga was right in the middle of a very large pile of paperwork when he heard a large crashing noise and the lamp over his head trembled slightly. He sighed, and set his papers aside.

"It would seem this pile of work will _never_ get done."

He arranged his desk neatly, and leaned back into his large chair, his hands steepled.

Hinata entered in her own due course, here meaning a spartan kick to the door. Who could blame her? She was pissed.

Hiashi blinked and said, very calmly, "Ah. I was hoping you'd stop by soon. I have something I wish to speak to you about." Hinata's eyes bulged slightly, and a tiny, non-byakugan related vein popped out slightly on her forehead.

Grabbing the door by the edge, she flung it shut with a splintering sound and screamed, "You wish to speak with me about my _arranged _marriage! I told you, I don't want--"

Hiashi held up a hand, stopping Hinata in her breath. "Yes, I wish to speak with you about your arranged marriage. It is a Hyuuga tradition for the clan head to select a suitable suitor for the firstborn daughter of the main family. Only a shinobi of the highest status will do. That is the way it has been done for generations. You have no choice in the matter. Your sixteenth birthday nears, and on that day you will be wed. That ends the issue." His iron gaze dared her to test the finality of the statement.

Hinata's eyes teared up slightly. She seemed to darken, to diminish.

Hiashi seemed not to notice. "Now then, would you like to meet your suitor?" And, without waiting for an answer, "They will be dining with our family tonight. It is your job to impress them and not make a fool out of yourself. Now, go get ready."

Hinata, her eyes still tearing up, nodded slowly and opened the door. "No matter what," she said, before she closed the door behind her, "I shall never love him."

Hiashi, a few seconds after Hinata had left, leaned forward and said, "Alright, you can come out now."

A figure dropped from the high ceiling, shrouded in shadow. "She really doesn't want to have an arranged marriage, you know."

Hiashi sighed. "I know. But, she will love you in time, despite what she believes now."

"Yes, I know. But how?"

"Don't worry. I have it all planned out."

**BWAHAHAHAHA!!!**

**You still don't know who they are! Who is it? WHO KNOWS?!**

**Hinata: Why are you doing this?!?!**

**Me: Well... you know... I get a kick out of your torture.**

**Hinata: ARGH!!!**

**Me: lol.**


	4. The Dinner

**Hiashi is a horrible person... At least, the way I'm making him is. I'm torturing you by having him torture Hinata. Well... just read, you'll see.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters within. They belong to the honorable Kishimoto-sama.**

Chapter 3: The Dinner.

Hinata cried on her bed for a few hours after meeting her father, but she knew that it was useless to resist the head of the Hyuuga Clan. In time, she calmed down and started to look for an outfit.

Hinata was fumbling around in her closet, looking for an appropriate dress for a formal dinner(she had a surprisingly large closet), when a knock came at her door.

"Big Sister? Are you in there?" Hanabi asked, while wondering if her sister had run off to the Mist Village already.

"Yes, Hanabi, I'm here. Would you come in here and help me find the dress I'm looking for?"

At her sister's response, Hanabi raised her eyebrows, but opened the door and closed it immediately behind her. She surveyed the mess on the floor, and the slow but apparently endless stream of clothes coming from Hinata's closet. She smirked, and said, "Which dress are you talking about, sister?"

Hinata poked her head out from behind the door, and stood up, facing Hanabi. "Well... you know... that one dress with the... thing... and it, you know... um... makes it all... you know... um... and then the... you know... nice." While she did this, Hinata made some very odd gestures, including one with her arms spread wide diagonally, and one in the general direction of her feet.

Hanabi raised her eyebrows, and wondered why it was that her sister was born before her. She looked down, and smiled. Then she bent over, and picked up a dress _seemingly_ at random. She lifted it up, and showed it to Hinata. "Was this the one you were talking about?"

It was a sleek black dress, with a decidedly low cut, and extremely thin straps that were obviously just for show. The end of the dress was at a tight slant, the higher half ending at mid-thigh-level, and the lower half ending around mid-shin. It wasn't too tight, the perfect amount to show off Hinata's curves.

Hinata simultaneously blanched white and blushed deep red. The end result was horribly comedic to Hanabi, and it was all she could do not to burst out laughing. "Hanabi! Where did you find that thing? Nobody is supposed to see that until I wear it!"

Her blush went from red to pink as she remembered why she had originally bought the dress. It was just after she had heard Naruto was on his way back to Konoha from training with Jiraiya. She had thought that she would finally have the confidence to express her feelings to the boy she loved. It was what she was going to wear on the date. But, her confidence gave out again then, and she ended up fainting as soon as he showed up.

Hanabi sighed, and walked past the daydreaming Hinata into the closet. She knew that her sister cared very much for the blonde shinobi, and hated the concept of this arranged marriage, but she still felt that perhaps Hinata could develop feelings for this suitor that her father had picked. Plus, it couldn't help Hinata that she was basically useless when it came to clothes and hair and other such girlish things. So Hanabi had to help.

Hinata was still daydreaming, now about the first time she had seen Naruto. It was a beautiful memory to her. Then she got hit in the head with a jacket. "OW! Hanabi, what was that for!" She yelled, turning. Her sister was in the closet, rummaging around for an outfit for her sister.

"AHA!" Hanabi yelled, jumping out from the closet, with an article of clothing behind her back. "I've found it, I'm a genius, and you can thank me later, big sister!"

Hinata raised an eyebrow. "Found what, Hanabi?" She said, tonelessly.

"THIS!" Hanabi exclaimed, bringing the dress around. It was a very light lavender color, and looked as if it were made purely of silk. It had a higher cut than the black dress, but it was still revealing enough to be considered bold. It had very nice-looking ruffled shoulders that sort of sat on the edge, and a small, semi-transparent shawl of the same color was draped over the top. The bottom of the dress ended at about mid-shin level.

Hinata's eyes went huge. "Oh my god! It's beautiful! Hanabi, where did you find it!"

Hanabi smirked, "It was hanging up in the very back, in a dry cleaning bag. Which explains exactly why you never found it. And now...you need my help again." She indicated Hinata's hair, which was still a mess from training and such.

Hinata lookedup. "Well... I suppose I could do something... Hanabi, would you please help me? Please?" She asked, temporairily forgetting that she hated the concept of this marriage.

Hanabi's smirk grew wider, and she pulled a chair out of seemingly nowhere. "I thought you'd never ask... sister."

The room grew silent.

-- Four Hours Later --

Hinata was ready. She still hated that her father was setting her up with a man she did not even know, but she was ready for the dinner that night, and she was ready for her suitor.

So, she stood in the front room of the Hyuuga manor, waiting for the invited guests. _That suitor of mine better show his face soon, or he's getting a face full of gentle fist! _

Her father walked up behind her, and instantly sensed her feelings. "Patience, Hinata. Your suitor will arrive shortly." With that, he walked ahead of her, and spread wide his arms.

"Ah, it would seem our guests are starting to arrive!"

Hinata looked out from behind her father, and nearly bugged out at what she saw. Of all the people she knew, she would say at least half were standing right in front of her. The Konoha Rookie 9, Team Gai, The sand Siblings, and Team Konohamaru were all in attendance, and standing in front of her in very dressy outfits. Then, at the head of them all, was the sannin Jiraya.

Hinata looked to her father with an incredulous look on her face. "What is this, father?"

Her father smiled, half benevolently, half evilly. "Well, I never said that your suitor would be the only one dining with us tonight. It is the anniversary of the beginning of the Hyuuga Clan, and by order of the Hokage, I am required to invite anyone that wishes to attend."

Hinata grimaced. "And my suitor? Which one is he?"

Hiashi outright beamed at her. "That is up to you to determine. After all, you are a ninja."

**Lol, I'm just soo evil.**

**Hinata: DAMN YOU! TELL ME WHO IT IS!**

**Me: Well... how about next time?**

**Hinata: ARGH!**


End file.
